We don't need no stinkin' slabs!!!

[JollyElm]

I hate everything about graded cards and most especially the ridiculous back and forth talk of, "I think if I resubmit this card, it'll get a half point bump," etc., etc. Apparently it never matters that they're talking about the same exact card. Nothing will change except for the stupid number of the slab. The card won't magically improve overnight. But last night I ran across the ultimate reason why graded cards are a waste of time…I simply opened my 1959 set binder. That was it. What wafted out was over a half century worth of cardboard 'fermentation.' Remember that beautiful smell? That comforting and familiar odor of your childhood?? I looked like John Belushi, just following my nose on a bender, trying to inhale all of that rich cardboard flavor. God, that made me smile!! Then I went to sniff my graded cards in their plastic tombs. Nothing. Just nothing. Ugh.

[cardinalcollector]

Good post. Baseball Cards were meant to be held, smelled, and fondled.

[Volod]

I'm with you guys....except for that time I ordered some 1954 Johnston Cookie cards back in the '80's. I ripped open the packaging, anticipating that delicious aroma of ancient pasteboard, and maybe even some lingering cookie smell, only to recoil from the noxious and unmistakable odor of polyvinyl chloride. The seller had stored the cards in cheap plastic pages that had deteriorated over time and just about ruined the cards. Pretty well-known and reputable dealer, at that. He cheerfully refunded the sale, but it struck me as strange that he had no clue about the dangers of cheap vinyl as late as the mid-80's.

[ALR-bishop]

I am not a graded collector. All my sets are in easy access binders. But I am just a hobby collector and what I have spent on cards is a very small fraction of my estate. If I was making my living on cards or was in it for the investment I get why you have to deal with grading currently. One of my best friends has one of the best post war collections I know of, and much of his collection is graded. I seek his opinion often on the reasonable market price for a card, graded or not. I don't let grading bother me anymore. It is what it is.

[Shoebox]

The fact that people let other collectors preferences bother in the first place is what amazes me. I just shake my head at the angst. If you don't like graded don't buy them. Why are worried about if I prefer something different?

I am a collecter. Don't do the crack and submit game. I buy what I like because I like it and if I buy it I plan to keep it. If I show my graded Goudeys or 50s Topps to someone and they admire it and compliment it that's great. But, I am not going to give a flip if they say they don't agree with grading cards. I don't expect anyone else to build their collection to suit me either. I have my reason for liking what I do and that's good enough for me.

[hangman62]

Jolly
I agree....especially for mid grade ( PSA 4,5,6,7) modern stuff . .. what a waste of money !

[Volod]

To each his own, but the thread did not seem to me to be so much about the pros and cons of grading vs non-grading, as about the olfactory aesthetics of old cards. And, it just happens that slabbed cards cannot, by their nature, be in any way appreciated by the nose. Doesn't make sense that slab collectors would take offense at that, i would think.

[campyfan39]

I don't like grading either and don't own a single graded card. I think it detracts from the eye appeal because as soon as you see it your eye goes toward the grade and not the card itself.
And the smell is awesome!

[JollyElm]

Originally Posted by Volod

To each his own, but the thread did not seem to me to be so much about the pros and cons of grading vs non-grading, as about the olfactory aesthetics of old cards. And, it just happens that slabbed cards cannot, by their nature, be in any way appreciated by the nose. Doesn't make sense that slab collectors would take offense at that, i would think.

Exactly!! But you forgot how many whiners populate this site. Always getting on their dumb soapboxes instead of just having some fun in a thread.

[ALR-bishop]

I confess

[Shoebox]

Originally Posted by JollyElm

Exactly!! But you forgot how many whiners populate this site. Always getting on their dumb soapboxes instead of just having some fun in a thread.

Why hello Mr. Pot, you can call me Kettle.

[JollyElm]

Originally Posted by Shoebox

Why hello Mr. Pot, you can call me Kettle.

You're obviously just a dick, Mrs. Kettle. Get a freaking life.

[ALR-bishop]

What do you collect by way of Nebraskans Dustin, and what does the 154 represent ?

I have another collecting friend, who recently sold off most of his collection to someone here at a good price, and who hates graded cards even more than Darren. Where are you Doug ?

[Shoebox]

Originally Posted by JollyElm

You're obviously just a dick, Mrs. Kettle. Get a freaking life.

If that was how it appeared then sorry. Just intended ad a good natured jab acknowledging I may have whined a bit but I figured you could admit that the original post is a soapbox. I am still relatively new to posting here and still trying to find my way. Not looking for some sort of pissing match so will do what I should have done before just move along.

[steve B]

Originally Posted by Shoebox

If that was how it appeared then sorry. Just intended ad a good natured jab acknowledging I may have whined a bit but I figured you could admit that the original post is a soapbox. I am still relatively new to posting here and still trying to find my way. Not looking for some sort of pissing match so will do what I should have done before just move along.

Awww... Don't worry Dustin, I think most of us took that as it was intended. A bit of back and forth can be fun, but we all have different tolerances for it.

As far as the whole graded/not graded thing goes, I'm somewhat ambivalent about it. The bulk of my collection isn't graded, and at least in the pre 1980 category really shouldn't be. P-F through G-vg is a pretty easy call for nearly everyone I have had a few of my prewar cards graded. I don't know if my daughters will be interested, and even if they are having the nicer ones done is pretty reasonable. It's nice having a few T cards I can let them look at without worrying that the card will get totally destroyed. And if they're not interested, selling them will be easier and probably get them a better return.

I do enjoy sometimes just going through a stack of old cards for the feel of it. My sense of smell isn't all that good, and it takes a LOT of old cardboard to make it register. (More than I own.) Then I'm torn between nostalgia and wondering about what's breaking down to cause the smell.

I know some of it is a feeling that slabs make the condition more important than the card, and that the difference in price bugs some people. All in all it's just a different version of being grumpy about rising prices of any kind. I'd love to be able to buy stuff for what It cost when I started, but higher prices have probably made a lot of great stuff available or saved it from being tossed out altogether.

I think there's room in the hobby for all of it. There's so many different ways people collect I really don't see it as more than just another different way.

I'll put away my soapbox for now......

Steve B

[pawpawdiv9]

For me..i went the graded route....so my family knows what they are and easy to look up.
They have no clue value wise, just knows if its in a display case or the safe, its worth something.
The new stuff, i just place back in their original boxes or some acrylic boxes or albulms.

[39special]

Most of my cards are not graded,but if I find a card that I want or need,that is in my price range that is graded,I buy it.The number grade means nothing to me.If the card looks good,
that's enough for me.

[JollyElm]

This thread was meant to be about the unbelievable nostalgia that comes when the wonderful aroma of old cardboard comes out. Yes, I personally hate graded cards, but I couldn't care less if other people collect them. Do whatever you want to do.

It's all about that beautiful smell released from the binder!!!!! Cardboard in all its glory.

[ALR-bishop]

I still fondly remember the bubblegum smell when openings packs and the light gum residue on those cards. I have several gum stained cards in my sets. I like having them. I collected by packs from 1957 through 1962. I then started buying cards by full series from the Card Collectors Company in NY. Loved getting those packages, but no more gum residue

[brob28]

I can still remember the distinctive aroma of gum when opening wax packs back in the mid/late seventies. After about 1979 I bought all cellos or full sets. Every once in a while I'll see a card from those times and instantly remember that smell and I'm 9 years old again on my family's porch with my shoebox of cards.

[brightair]

I collected cards as a kid in the '50s and still enjoy gum and wax stains, edge wear, creases and the smell of old cards.
Here is one thing I don't get about slabbed cards...
I was at the Shriner's show yesterday and saw a box of slabbed cards for sale at $1.25 apiece. I didn't look at them, I assume they are all UV, but later I wondered how anyone can sell slabbed cards so cheap?
Doesn't it cost way more than that to get a card slabbed (never done it myself, don't collect them)?
And why would anyone slab a modern card that isn't even worth the cost of grading?
To each his own, I agree, just need someone to explain the logic behind this to me.
Richard D

[BruceinGa]

Originally Posted by brightair

Doesn't it cost way more than that to get a card slabbed (never done it myself, don't collect them)?

Minimum of $10 imo.

Originally Posted by brightair

And why would anyone slab a modern card that isn't even worth the cost of grading?

Maybe thinking it would be a 10?

Originally Posted by brightair

To each his own, I agree, just need someone to explain the logic behind this to me.

I can't explain that!

[BruceinGa]

Maybe it's my ocd but I'm afraid of damaging anything I touch. When I borrow something I believe in returning it in better condition than when I received it. My magazine and books at home are kept in a place that protect them, (kind of).
It makes me sick to see the condition of the 1983 cards that my sons and I collected.
I enjoy looking at a nice card in a slab or top loader but not one mistreated.
My wife says that I need help . I would tend to agree with her.

[Volod]

If one of the slabbing companies could come up with a grading criterion for bubblegum dust and aroma, I would pay big bucks for a 1953 Bowman Color card with strong dusting, just so that I could crack it open and inhale my way back to the age of eight. I know, now the thread is being reduced to goofiness, but I am halfway serious about that.

[Bestdj777]

Regardless of your opinion on grading, I think we can all agree that this one needs to remain safely sealed in its slab:

[steve B]

Originally Posted by Bestdj777

Regardless of your opinion on grading, I think we can all agree that this one needs to remain safely sealed in its slab:

That card looks familiar One of those odd cases where it's probably better for the cards around it if it's slabbed.

Steve B

[steve B]

That makes sense, lots of nostalgia in that for sure.

That's probably why I kept the binder and pages I got in 74. Awful stuff, and I don't use it anymore, but the memories of opening packs and deciding which cards if any were in and which ones were out are fun. I only had so many pages, so the exact cards being protected varied.

Probably also the reason the 74 set is still in pages in a generic old view binder, with an old cash register tape and a boog Powell to label the set, and the Sports Illustrated from Aarons 715th in the front cover pocket.


Steve B

Originally Posted by JollyElm

This thread was meant to be about the unbelievable nostalgia that comes when the wonderful aroma of old cardboard comes out. Yes, I personally hate graded cards, but I couldn't care less if other people collect them. Do whatever you want to do.

It's all about that beautiful smell released from the binder!!!!! Cardboard in all its glory.

[clydepepper]

Am I the only one who has yielded to the temptation and taken a bite of a stick of seriously old bubble gum...and be relieved that it did not kill me?

[Bestdj777]

Originally Posted by steve B

That card looks familiar One of those odd cases where it's probably better for the cards around it if it's slabbed.

Steve B

Haha, I knew I got it on here but forgot who I got it from. It is a proud part of my collection but I'd definitely be concerned what it would do to the rest of my collection if let loose.

[JollyElm]

Originally Posted by Bestdj777

Regardless of your opinion on grading, I think we can all agree that this one needs to remain safely sealed in its slab:

I don't know how to tell you this, but I think…no, I'm sure…that card has ebola!!!!

[ALR-bishop]

Raymond-- I built a set of Topps 1981 Thirst Break Comics, which has a baseball subset. The Comics served as a wrapper around individual pieces of gum. I think the gum was originally greenish. I bought a couple of unopened boxes to finish the set. Cleaning the gum off the comics was not easy. The gum is now brownish, but very gooey and juicy. I have several pieces left. Would be happy to send you some if you promise to have someone take an I Pone video of you popping it in and starting to chew and then posting it here

Maybe we can scrounge you up a 1963 Fleer cookie as well

[steve B]

I bought a pack of that gum at Woolworths maybe a year after it was issued, maybe two. Mine was orange, and simply awful. I'm not sure if they had other flavors. If the wrappers were something other than orange then they did.


Steve B

Originally Posted by ALR-bishop

Raymond-- I built a set of Topps 1981 Thirst Break Comics, which has a baseball subset. The Comics served as a wrapper around individual pieces of gum. I think the gum was originally greenish. I bought a couple of unopened boxes to finish the set. Cleaning the gum off the comics was not easy. The gum is now brownish, but very gooey and juicy. I have several pieces left. Would be happy to send you some if you promise to have someone take an I Pone video of you popping it in and starting to chew and then posting it here

Maybe we can scrounge you up a 1963 Fleer cookie as well

[almostdone]

Not to derail this too much but I did try a piece of old gum from a pack of 1980 Topps. It basically instantly turned to a not-as-sweet-asI-remember dust as soon as it got moist on my tounge. The flavor stayed in my mouth for a long time and it felt like I licked a bowl of flour instantly sucking out the moisture out of my mouth. I think the memory of it stayed longer than the actual taste but I now can say without any reservation that's I'm not going to try that ever again.
Drew